Where does “if” come from?

if (Middle English) comes from Old English ġif, from Proto-Germanic jabai, from Proto-Indo-European ē- — then, at that time.

if (Middle English): if, on condition that

Definitions

  1. if, on condition that

Ancestry of “if”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Old Englishġifif
2Proto-Germanicjabaiwhen, if
3Proto-Indo-Europeanē-then, at that time

Words derived from “if”

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ē- →Every word from Proto-Germanic jabai →Every word from Old English ġif →